


I Am Always Yours

by ShadowHaloedAngel



Series: Stay [8]
Category: Ocean's 8 (2018)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Banter, Broken Bones, Concussions, F/F, Flirting, Heist Wives, Hurt/Comfort, I swear these two need a spray bottle, Injury Recovery, Paralysis, Post-Prison, Recovery, Softness, They have the worst timing, Whumptober, almost but not quite shower sex, grumpy medics, possessiveness and protectiveness, temporary paralysis
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-22
Updated: 2018-10-22
Packaged: 2019-08-03 02:53:48
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,994
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16317758
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ShadowHaloedAngel/pseuds/ShadowHaloedAngel
Summary: After everything that's happened, being presumed dead gives them a bit of a breathing space and some much needed time to recover.Prompts: 16. Bedridden/20. Concussion/26. Broken Ribs/27. "I can't walk."/28. Severe Illness; 13. "Stay."





	I Am Always Yours

**Author's Note:**

> Huge thanks to flightinflame for sending me the prompts, to Fahre for inspiration, and to Why for being an exceedingly patient and appropriately evil sounding board and second pair of eyes.
> 
> I took one look at the prompts and knew I had to do something with Debbie and Lou for them, but rather than doing the challenge properly with a series of short fics, I ended up planning out a whole series with a story arc and everything, combining prompts into stories. I've never done anything like this before, and I appreciate that I'm not technically doing it properly this time, but I'm excited about it. The whole series is planned, but might not all go up during October depending on how long it takes me to write. Obviously, warning, this is based on Whumptober prompts, and it's going to go pretty dark at times. I promise there will be a happy ending, because I don't do hurt without comfort, it's just that this time there's going to be a little longer to wait. I hope you'll find it worth it.
> 
> Oh, and I'll award cookies to people who figure out what the connection is between work titles as the month goes on

The drive back to the city is slow. Sue has always been a careful driver, and with the current state of at least one, more like two, of her passengers, she's not taking any chances. The storm is still pretty bad, but the roads are passable. Debbie doesn't ask where they're going because she doesn't really care. Lou is what matters right now, and she trusts Sue and Natasha enough to be sure that they're not going back to anywhere associated with the Ocean name. 

Lou is sitting up, but she's slumped against the door and Debbie isn't sure how much she's actually holding herself up. Debbie wants so desperately to talk to her, but she doesn't have the words for what they have been through, and she doesn't really want to have that conversation in front of Sue and Natasha either. It's not that she doesn't trust them, she does, with her life, with Lou's life, but this... this is messy and complicated and private, and Debbie Ocean has never been good at any of those things, let alone all at once. This is something which, for now, has to stay between them. Debbie's just glad that Lou's sitting up, because surely that means it can't be that bad, right? 

Sue pulls into in the garage of her house and lowers the door behind them. She lives in the city, technically, but it's more the outskirts. It's quiet, almost suburban. Debbie doesn't know if she trusts it. She's always been more of a city girl. But Sue's been associating with the underworld for long enough that the security on this place won't be something to be taken lightly. 

Debbie waits for a moment, then opens her door, glancing at Lou. Lou isn't moving and Debbie is trying not to think too much about that because she's going to have to confront it later and the first thing she needs to do now is get in the house. Sue's garage is not the place to have a breakdown. Not until Lou is somewhere safe. Of course, it stands to reason that right now somewhere safe means as far away from Debbie Ocean as it's possible to get, but when it comes to Lou, Debbie's always been selfish. She had never, ever meant for it to end like this, though. The guilt is still roiling in her stomach, hot and heavy and acrid, and though there's nothing left to throw up it turns over anyway. 

Sue and Natasha have walked to the back of the car and opened Lou's door. Sue's the one who's reaching around to unclip the seatbelt, and both of them are reaching in to take her weight, holding her steady, one under each arm. Lou is leaning heavily on them, moving stiffly, and she can't look Debbie in the eye. 

Debbie can't blame her.

She stands back and lets Sue and Natasha and Lou take the lead because she doesn't know where she's going, and she's not exactly confident in her own judgement right now. She follows behind the three of them, pleasantly surprised when Sue shows them into a very nice little bedroom still on the ground floor. Then she realises it's probably because they don't want to be taking Lou upstairs. Debbie watches while they lay the blonde gently out on the bed, and she only realises she's forgotten to breathe when she notices Lou's chest rising and falling and feels herself inhale. Her lungs are burning in protest, but she's still better off with all her ribs intact. 

Sue and Natasha both leave again, but Debbie is pretty certain they'll be back soon, and she doesn't want to run the risk of them walking in on something. She's pretty sure it's going to get ugly. It's not that she wants it to, not at all, but if the situations were reversed... well. If the situations were reversed, Debbie knows what she would want to do. She would want to hold Lou close, as close as physically possible, and tell her that it was going to be okay, tell her that she loved her, that she still loved her, that she didn't blame her... but those were all things Debbie needed to hear right now like a physical ache which she knew she had no right to expect or demand. She's not entitled to Lou's forgiveness, or her love, or her anything. Not after this. 

Lou's eyes crack open and Debbie's breath hitches, because she's transfixed on every single twitch of her features. She stays frozen in place, waiting for... she doesn't know what. 

The laundry list of scenarios running through her brain where Lou demands that she leave is cut short by Lou's voice, which has a way of being able to get through to Debbie under almost any circumstances, though it's rougher and huskier than usual. Debbie has no idea what the state of her own throat is. Now that she finally thinks about it, she realises it aches. The dull kind of ache that comes from unheard screams. She swallows. It doesn't help. 

"Stop standing there watching me, it's creepy. Get your arse in here where it belongs."

"I- I didn't- I wasn't sure if..."

And even like this, even in pain, even after hours of torture and facing the prospect of death, even lying on her back with her eyes half-closed, Lou can still give Debbie a /look/ that makes her fall silent. 

"Debbie. I'm trying to be very patient, but I really need to hold you right now, and I don't believe for a second that you're not desperate to be in here with me too because you're just as scared and just as hurt as I am. So stop... whatever this is. Stop trying to be formal, stop thinking I'll break, and just get in here because I swear to god if I can't touch you right now I'm going to fall apart."

And Debbie pauses only to take off her shoes before she climbs onto the bed next to Lou, closing the distance between them one breath at a time, so desperately desperately trying not to hurt her more than she already has. 

"I'm not..." She starts, and she doesn't know how to finish. 

Lou turns her head just enough to look at her, still just that one eye cracked open. 

"Not what."

It isn't a question. That's Lou's done with this shit tone. It never brooks any questioning. Debbie's heard it a lot.

Debbie looks down and swallows, her voice cracking as she tries to answer. 

"...Not hurt as bad as you."

"Bullshit. You were poisoned. You were dying in front of me, Deb. And they made you watch. If anyone ever tried to torture you in front of me... well, I know a bit about how that would feel, because they did. They just did. It wasn't just me in that room, Deb, it was both of us. I'm not trying to say I'm in great shape, because I'm not. I'm pretty beat up right now but it is all shit that will heal given time, and given you. Because if I don't have you it becomes something else that I... " And Lou breaks off and sighs and looks away for a moment before she turns back to Debbie, "I need you here in a very fundamental way, because I need to know that you are okay. That you are here and alive and intact and okay and mine still, if you want to be. Because ever since you got out I've watched you slipping away from me and tried to find my way through the lies and although it suddenly got very real, I feel like I've been watching you die for weeks. You never meant to get me mixed up in this, fair enough. You never meant to get mixed up in this at all, fair enough. But I've just been electrocuted and waterboarded while all the while hoping that I'll be able to last long enough for you to get the antidote to the poison that was killing you right in front of me. So let me be a little selfish right now. Let me be selfish enough for both of us and tell you to get your arse right here in this bed next to me now, so that you don't have to admit how much you need to be here. Just shut up for once, stop thinking, stop talking, and just stay here."

And Debbie only just stops herself from throwing herself against Lou's side because she want to cling on so tight that nothing will ever tear them apart again. She's been so separate for Lou for weeks, months, years even, but the weeks have hurt the most because Lou's been right there and Debbie hasn't been able to allow herself to get close. She's been aching for it, because nowhere has ever, /ever/ felt like home the way Lou's embrace does, and as she buries her face against Lou's collarbone hot tears boil over because it feels like it's finally over. It's not, but this time she is going to be the one to finish it. 

Revenge can wait. The two of them both have a lot of healing to do, and there are some advantages to being presumed dead. 

Lou's arm comes around Debbie's shoulders, and if she's in pain she doesn't show it as she lets Debbie weep on her shoulder. Her own tears will come later, but this... this is more than their experience in the warehouse for Debbie, and if the dam breaks now, maybe there won't be any more secrets between them, any more lies, any more barriers. Fear has been paralysing Debbie Ocean for too long, and now neither of them has to be scared anymore. Lou is hoping this might be the key to getting Debbie back. She's looking forward to seeing how this particular revenge goes down, because nobody plots revenge like Debbie Ocean. That's where her true artistry has always come to the fore. 

Natasha brings their bags in from the car, and honestly Debbie can't even remember what was in them, and Sue brings her medical kit and a tray of food in. It's not so much about whether or not any of them are actually hungry and more about the fact that they need to eat. 

"Okay. Debbie, I need you to get up. Lou, you're going to need to get up too, don't worry, we'll help you with that. You're both going to have a shower, yes, you can share, no, you cannot get busy, because if something happens that makes Lou's ribs worse I am going to be pissed at both of you. Then you're going to get into warm, dry, clean, comfortable pyjamas, I'm going to bandage your ribs Lou, and check your ECG for any lasting effects from the shocks and fix your stitches, then I'm going to check your concussion Debbie - yes, you have one - and make sure you're not showing any more symptoms of acute anticholinergic syndrome, or cholinergic syndrome if the antidote went too far the other way. Then you're both going to eat something, and go to sleep. If you need sedatives for that, I can do that. But I'm also assuming you're probably going to want to talk. My room is upstairs, Natasha is staying the night too. If you need anything, if you want to talk, if you need anything at all, just call us, okay?"

Debbie's whole body feels heavy as she pries herself away from Lou. She doesn't want to, but she understands why she has to. 

It's Sue and Natasha again who help Lou to her feet, but this time when she's standing Lou reaches for Debbie, and Debbie goes straight to her. 

Sue points at the door off the room that they didn't come in through. 

"That's your bathroom. There are clean towels in there. We'll leave you to it."

But she pauses, then steps in to embrace each of them in turn. 

"...I'm really glad you're safe. And you'll be okay. I love you both very much. Even if you are occasionally ridiculous pains in my ass."

Despite how tired she is, and the way she feels she doesn't want to do anything but cry, Debbie manages a smile. 

"You'd be bored without us. We're a challenge."

"Boring in medicine is fine. It's often most doctors' favourites."

"Then you got mixed up with the wrong crowd."

"And don't I know it."

Sue opens the door and turns the light on for them, her voice dry but a wry smile on her lips all the same. 

"There. Get clean, get warm, get dry, then call me. We'll get things squared away."

And Debbie is the one who takes Lou's weight now and helps her into the bathroom.

She leans Lou against the wall and starts with her shirt, unbuttoning it one at a time, every movement delicate and deliberate as her eyes gaze unwaveringly at the pale skin which is gradually revealed. God she's missed this. She's missed undressing Lou. How stupid is that, at a moment like this? But she has. She's missed the intimacy she couldn't allow herself, she's missed the tantalising effect of the slow reveal, the look of Lou's body, because /god/ she really does have a perfect body. There's nobody to compare. 

And she looks up and straight into Lou's eyes and there's a heat in them that makes Debbie's breath catch in her chest. 

"...I want you."

And oh /god/ but Debbie is powerless against those words and it's all she can do not to fall to her knees. 

"I want you too, Lou, I've been wanting you since- fuck..."

"I know. I know. But we can't. Even if-"

"We can't."

Debbie agrees, but she's leaning in close and her breath is ghosting over Lou's jaw, and Lou is the one who closes the gap, who kisses her first, who kisses her like Debbie is oxygen, who is hot and sweet and possessive and Debbie /surrenders/ because she is Lou's, she has always been Lou's, and she has needed this for so long and it's finally, /finally/ okay. 

"Your ribs-"

"Damn my ribs, they don't hurt that bad..."

Another kiss because this is so much more important than anything else. 

"I love you."

"I love you too."

"I'm yours, Lou, I've always been yours."

And Lou nips her lip and Debbie gasps because that shot of pain is welcome, grounding, and she wants more. 

"Mine. Always mine. Just mine."

And the noise of want that escapes Debbie's lips at those words sounds like a pained animal, but Lou tugs her closer with her hands on Debbie's slim hips, holding on tight because what else does she have to hold on to?

Debbie buries her face against Lou's neck and breathes, deep, shuddering breaths that are almost sobs as her lips work against Lou's collarbone, desperate to stake a claim she's no longer sure she deserves, but Lou's offering no resistance. 

It's Lou who eventually breaks the closeness, shifting so that she can leave her own mark, dark and proud on Debbie's throat, and Debbie finally finishes undressing her with only a lingering glance of admiration at the delicate lace that was cupping Lou's tits under all of that. She tries not to focus on the ugly curve of the ripped stitches, or the blossoming purple over Lou's ribs. 

When Lou's undressed, Debbie shifts back enough to strip off herself. She's much more hurried about it, there's nothing to savour here, but a brush of Lou's hand on her forearm as she tugs off her shirt, and a glance at the look in her eyes makes Debbie slow down. After all, she got to enjoy the show. Broken ribs shouldn't mean that Lou gets any less pleasure out of this. 

Debbie steps into the shower first, getting the water running, grateful for the powerful spray and the fact that it comes out hot. When it's just right, she helps Lou step in too, and the blonde once more leans against the wall, white teeth leaving pale imprints in the pink of her lip as she winces against the pain. 

"Are you okay?"

"I will be. I'll need you to wash my hair though."

"I figured..."

And Debbie smiles, because actually she's always enjoyed this. Taking care of Lou, the intimacy of being naked together without anything more (not that she doesn't love their other activities). She knows how nice it can feel to have someone else wash your hair, or pet your hair, and offering that to Lou is something that's always meant a lot to Debbie. There have been times when she's had precious little else to offer, after all.

They take their time. There's no need to rush, the water is still hot, and defrosting them from the inside out after the last twenty four hours, and this is the first time since Debbie's release that they've been together like this. There's a lot of relearning to do, and it's all Debbie can do not to trace every new mark with her mouth until she hears its story (and then probably again afterwards at every opportunity). She's fairly sure Sue would mutter something about it being unsanitary though, and so she behaves. For the most part.

When they're finished, the towels are warm and huge and fluffy, and they envelop both of the women completely. Debbie luxuriates in it. It feels safe, it feels good... it's very different to what she's been used to. Lou looks a little better too, a little more grounded, a little less hunted, and Debbie kisses her again just because she can. There's no weight behind it now, there doesn't need to be. 

It's Lou who calls Sue, and Debbie still finds her presence reassuring. Sue is a small woman, slender, and short, but she exudes competence and confidence in a quiet way that just naturally makes those around her feel better about things. As promised, she starts on Lou, and Debbie can tell from the tone of the muttering even if she can't hear the actual words that Sue is most unimpressed about how her handiwork has been treated. She does at least have the decency to dose Lou up with anaesthetic again before she starts though, and Debbie can tell when it kicks in from the way Lou's features smooth out. She's too busy stroking Lou's hair, her cheek, murmuring against her ear everything that Debbie has wanted to say but been unable to for the last six years to pay much attention to what Sue is doing. It seems to help while the stitches are repaired and wrapped, and Lou leans on Debbie when Sue has her shift so she can wrap Lou's ribs while Debbie strokes her hair and continues to murmur in her ear. 

When Sue moves on to Debbie, Lou's arms are wrapped around Debbie's waist, and Debbie is leaning back into Lou's shoulder because neither of them can face being apart for the moment. It doesn't take her long to diagnose a minor concussion. 

"You're both on bedrest for the next few days. We'll see if anything changes. Lou you'll be on pain-relief too, Debbie, you need to let me know if you have any headaches or your symptoms get worse. For both of you the most important thing is going to be rest. I've brought some food, eat what you can, drink some water, then get some sleep. Natasha and I are both just upstairs if you need anything."

"Thanks Sue."

"I'd say my pleasure but that doesn't quite seem appropriate in the circumstances." She smiles warmly at both of them, perched on the edge of the bed, "I'm glad to have done it. Get some sleep now. I'll see you in the morning."

While Sue was working, Natasha has left two steaming mugs of cocoa on the side. 

Debbie reaches for them first, handing one to Lou and then picking up her own. They sit next to each other on the bed, propping each other up like bookends, leaning on each other through this like they always have through everything, and the contact feels so good. At times like this words have always felt unnecessary, but she says some anyway. 

"...I love you."

"I love you too."

There's a little smile on Lou's lips because Debbie Ocean isn't usually given to declarations of feelings, and they're warm and safe and there's cocoa. 

"Is it going to take a blow to the head to get you to tell me that this often in future?"

Debbie pauses, and shakes her head. 

"No. I'm sorry. I'll tell you more often in future. I always should have told you more than I did."

"It's fine, Deb. You and I have never really been good with words anyway."

"No, but if I'd been a little better with words we might not have ended up in this situation..."

"You can't know that. Neither of us can know that. Like you said this is Danny's fault anyway. Who exactly is it that's behind this?"

Debbie sighs, and takes a long sip of her cocoa. She has a chocolate moustache, and it makes Lou smile. She'd almost laugh but for the pain in her ribs. The anaesthetic Sue has given her is the good drugs, and she can't feel much of anything at all at the moment, but the knowledge that it's there is enough. 

"...I think it's a guy called Xhevdet Lika. He's Eastern European mafia, with a bad reputation, unsurprisingly. I think we've encountered the sharp end of that. Danny was trying to set up a long con, Lika found him out, and because he saw it as a betrayal of the trust he'd placed in Danny... things got nasty."

"Family-level nasty."

"Family-level nasty." Debbie confirms, and she's gazing at the steam curling off her hot chocolate like she can see answers in the patterns of it. Lou is far more interested in drinking hers. "For now he thinks we're dead, which is fine. I'm completely okay with him thinking that we're dead, but unless we're very careful it's eventually going to come out that we're not dead, and then..."

"So what do we do?"

Lou asks, watching Debbie. This has never been her scene, but this is where Debbie excels. Lou just hopes she still has it in her to excel. 

There's a long, long pause while Debbie still just gazes into the steam. Lou picks a sandwich off the plate and starts munching, because she's fucking /starving/ and Natasha makes really good tuna salad. When Debbie finally speaks again, it almost takes Lou by surprise because she's been focussed on other things. 

"...I want revenge." Her voice is soft, and that sends a shiver through Lou, because Debbie is at her most dangerous when she's quiet, but this game has the highest stakes they've ever played for, and they weren't the ones to raise them. "I want him to burn for what he did to you. All of them. It's not enough for him to learn not to mess with us, because teaching that lesson will be expensive and I'm not risking you again. I won't feel safe until I know his whole organisation has been taken down, and I want to be the one to burn it to the ground."

Lou hesitates, because although she completely sympathises and maybe even agrees... she's not comfortable compromising their principles for someone like this. 

"Deb... I mean, I get where you're coming from, but this is sounding..."

And Debbie's gaze comes back into focus as she looks at Lou, coming to the surface of whatever reverie she was in. 

"Oh, I don't want to kill him. He's old-school enough that an honourable death wouldn't bother him at all. I want to take him down, I want everything he's built to burn, and I want him to rot in jail while he watches it all fall apart and knows it's because he picked a fight with an Ocean, because he picked a fight with a woman, because he picked a fight with /me/. Because he hurt /you/, and you were never a part of this."

"You weren't a part of it either. But he dragged both of us into this, so we're seeing it through to the end together. What's your plan?"

"I'm working on it. We're going to need help with it, but I think I know just the people. My head hurts though, and Sue said bedrest, so give me a few days on the detail."

"You might need longer than that, you shouldn't think too hard with a concussion. Shut up and have a sandwich."

That makes Debbie smile, and she follows Lou's advice. Between the two of them they manage to eat all the sandwiches, and the cookies that were left out for them, and by the time they're done, Debbie is yawning. 

Lou gets comfortable leaning back against the pillows and Debbie tucks up to her side with Lou's arm around her shoulders. On a whim, Lou kisses her forehead and grins at the look Debbie gives her. 

"Sorry, couldn't help myself. You were just too cute."

"I'm not cute."

"You're adorable, always have been."

"Your standards are warped."

"Well yes, but we knew that. Why else do you think I've been dating you for the past twenty years?"

Debbie rolls her eyes and cuddles up closer. The smell of Lou is just the best thing. The best, best thing. Right up there with the warmth of her, the softness of her skin, and the beating of her heart which Debbie's own always syncs effortlessly to.

Debbie is struggling to keep her eyes open, but she can sleep here because they're safe, really safe, for the first time in... weeks, maybe even months? She's lost track. And because Lou's here. She's half-asleep already when she speaks again.

"Lou?"

"Mmmn?"

Debbie can feel Lou's fingers carding gently through her hair as the Australian makes a slightly amused sound of acknowledgement. 

"...'m sorry."

There's a pause, the briefest hesitation in the rhythm in her hair, and Debbie feels Lou's lips press warm to her forehead again. 

"I'm okay, sweetheart. I will be okay, and so will you. So we'll talk more in the morning, okay? Just stay right here where you belong."

"Mmmkay... 'm not goin' anywhere..."

And Debbie passes out. 

***

In the morning, Debbie wakes slowly. She's warm and comfortable, floating on a patch of sunlight and in Lou's embrace. She's also out of the shadow of immediate harm for the foreseeable future. She comes to with the realisation that she really needs the bathroom, and moves to get up, reluctantly peeling herself from Lou's embrace.

Except that she doesn't move. 

Debbie Ocean stares at her legs. She's willing them to move, but nothing is happening. She can picture how it should look in her mind's eye, she knows how it should feel, but she's not moving and she doesn't understand. Even her arms feel weak, but she can at least move them, and she taps Lou on the shoulder, trying to wake her, because Debbie is starting to realise that she really, really needs the bathroom and also that there's no way she's getting there under her own steam. 

"Lou? Lou! Wake up, Lou..."

And to Debbie's eternal relief (although she'd been hoping this was a nightmare), Lou opens her eyes, sleepy and bright blue and so deep Debbie just wants to drown in them, but there's no time now. 

"Hey... what's up?"

"I can't move my legs. Lou, I can't move my legs, and I really need the bathroom, but I can't..."

"Okay, okay."

Lou cuts her off, trying to take control before this grows into full-blown hysteria (although she wouldn't blame Debbie for it at all). 

"Whatever's going on, I'm sure it's going to be fine. SUE!"

"What if it's the poison? What if I just can't walk now? What-"

Lou kisses her to shut her up, and Sue and Natasha are both in the doorway when they finally break off, because even if her legs don't work, Debbie's mouth sure as hell still does and she's always been a very good kisser. 

"What's going on?"

"Debbie can't move her legs, and she needs the bathroom. I'd have helped with that but I figured with my ribs you'd probably yell at me."

"You'd be right about that."

Sue comes over and helps Debbie up out of bed, taking her weight and helping her get into the bathroom because whatever is going on, after everything she's been through Sue is most emphatically not going to leave her friend without dignity. 

When Debbie's finished and cleaned up, Sue helps fix her pyjamas, and takes Debbie's weight again to get her back out to the bed, with Natasha helping. Debbie's eyes are wide with terror. 

"What's going on Sue? Was it the atropine? Am I never going to be able to walk again?"

The first thing Sue does is hug her, stroking an escaping strand of Debbie's hair back behind her ear and shifting back enough to look her in the eyes. 

"No. I don't think it's the poison. My best guess right now is that this is probably a reaction to everything you've been through. There's a condition that... well, it used to be called hysterical paralysis. It's when the brain has decided it's had enough and that manifests in physical symptoms. I don't think this is the atropine, or your mild concussion, I think this is just a... perfectly reasonable, honestly, reaction to all the stress that you've been under for a prolonged period of time. It's not hugely uncommon, and most cases are temporary and resolve themselves."

"How long do they usually take to resolve themselves?"

It's Lou asking the important questions now because Debbie looks like she's lost the ability to breathe. Lou reaches out to gently rub a hand up and down the patch of bare skin at the small of Debbie's back. 

"In very rare cases, up to decades. There are plenty that resolve themselves in a matter of weeks though, and so I think... the best thing we can do is wait and see? Your ribs will take three to six weeks to heal properly anyway, so let's use that as a starting point. If it looks like it's going to go on longer then... there are things we can do. But this isn't something that's taken me completely by surprise, and it's not something that I think needs to spell disaster just yet either."

"So this could be permanent?"

"It's unlikely." Sue gently pinches the muscle of Debbie's thigh just above her knee, on the leg without the injection bruises. "Did you feel that?"

Debbie nods, and takes a deep shuddering breath, much to Lou's relief. 

"...Yeah."

"Okay. That means you still have sensation, it's just that they're not responsing to the motor cues they're getting. That's good, because that means nerve damage hasn't occurred. I didn't think it had, there's nothing that should have caused that degree of nerve damage, but it's hard to be sure. The pathways are there, it might just be that stress has overwhelmed them and they need a little while to recover. I know patience isn't your strong suit, but I think you'll just need to be patient for a while."

And Debbie nods again and leans back into the feel of Lou's hand on her back, because she can feel that, she can feel /everything/, it's just that her stupid legs aren't listening to her. 

"We'll make some breakfast, then I strongly suggest that the two of you spend the day resting again. Your bodies have been through a lot, they will both need time to heal. If you need the bathroom, call either of us. We'll both be within shouting distance, okay?"

And Debbie nods, but she's worrying her lip now, and shivering against Lou's hand. The blonde tugs her back against her side and winces, looking away from Sue's unimpressed eyebrow. 

"...Could I have some more painkillers please, Sue?"

"You may, but I'm serious when I say don't strain yourself, okay?"

"I understand. We both do."

It's Natasha's turn to pipe up now, and she's smiling a little in the doorway, almost affectionately. 

"...How about some pancakes?"

"Pancakes sound great."

"If we make you pancakes you'll behave yourselves and get some more sleep?"

"Promise." Lou replies, and Debbie just nods.

Satisfied, Natasha and Sue both disappear again, and it's not long before two stacks of pancakes with syrup appear, with glasses of orange juice and water, and some tea. Evidently coffee is off the cards for the moment. Neither Lou nor Debbie feels like it's a good idea to argue. They eat, put the plates aside, and curl up together again to get some more sleep. 

***

Lou is first to be allowed out of bed. When it becomes obvious that she's not suffering any particular lingering ill effects from the time in the warehouse other than the broken ribs, Sue encourages her to get up and move around on the condition that she's careful about it and doesn't think about lifting anything heavy. She doesn't exactly go far, but she does walk around the house, sometimes spend time with Natasha and Sue, and take the opportunity to check in with Farah and Peggy. Sue encourages that because it's good for her lungs to keep moving. Nobody needs a chest infection on top of broken ribs. 

She does spend most of her time sat with Debbie though, and as far as Debbie can tell, Lou is finding this reversal of their usual roles entertaining. Debbie would never admit it but she has a mothering streak a mile wide when her friends are sick, and that's something Lou's been on the receiving end of more than once. Lou isn't the nursing kind as a rule, but right now, she can imagine what it has to be doing to Debbie to be trapped in this bed (as nice as it is), and she's still a little bit leery of letting Debbie out of her sight for too long. Lou's half expecting the paralysis to hit her harder than anything else, coming, as it has, after they both thought things were going to be okay. Although Sue is positive about it, there's no way to be sure, and this is the ultimate loss of control for someone who has always been as self-possessed and independent as Debbie Ocean. Spending time with Debbie is the one thing Lou feels she can do to make sure Debbie gets through it.

It takes a couple of weeks, but gradually Debbie starts to regain control of her legs. It starts from her toes, when Lou looks up from the book she's been reading aloud and stares because Debbie's foot is poking out from the blankets at the foot of the bed and her big toe is twitching. 

After that it doesn't take so long for the control to come back, but it does take another couple of weeks to build her strength up again. Six weeks after the snowstorm hit the East Coast, Sue's finally happy with the state of Lou's ribs, and Debbie makes it up and down a flight of stairs unaided, even if she does have to sit down afterwards to recover. It's a good day for all of them. 

Despite herself, Lou feels a little shiver go through her when she smiles at Debbie and sees those usually warm brown eyes glinting, hard and unforgiving. The smile doesn't quite reach them either, and when Lou tilts her head questioningly, Debbie's grin only grows more predatory. 

"We're back."

**Author's Note:**

> Cameos again from Marvel's Sue Storm and Natasha Romanov, mentions of DGHDA's Farah Black, and Marvel's Peggy Carter. 
> 
> Don't worry, we're not at the end yet. There are three more parts to the story arc, part nine, a bonus whumptober fic in this universe recycling some of the prompts in a different way, and then a part 11 which will be written in November at some point because I want the words for NaNoWriMo. Also two of the prompts now on this fic were originally on the previous one, so go figure.
> 
> Part Nine will post as planned on Thursday, but since it has now acquired chapters (this was not the plan THIS WAS NEVER THE PLAN), it will update every day from the 25th-30th inclusive, and the final part 10 will post on Hallowe'en.
> 
> Also these two need a goddamn spray bottle at times I swear...
> 
> P.S. This has gone up several hours early because it's now 2 am, which means it's Monday, and I'm still awake because I'm having adventures with NHS 111. They've changed the advice from telling me to go to A&E, but I'm still awake, stressed, sick, and miserable. I figured doing this would mean something positive came out of it, so have part eight about 5 hours ahead of schedule <3


End file.
